Many business owners, however, are under the mistaken impression that they are completely protected from personal liability by filing a Certificate of Incorporation for a corporation. This is not true. The mere process of incorporating does not completely protect the business owners. To lessen the likelihood of such personal or shareholder liability, you should make sure to adhere to certain procedures:
An important step in forming a new business is to determine the type of business structure that you will use. There are several business structures to choose from, including sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, limited liability company and limited liability partnership. Each has advantages and disadvantages as well as tax consequences of which you should be aware. You must decide which of these structures best suits your business objectives and needs. The Secretary of State cannot advise you on choosing a business structure. For help in making this decision, you may wish to consult a tax practitioner, accountant or attorney.
Eligible funds received through this program can be used for business conversion, repair or enlargement; the purchase and development of land or buildings; the purchase of equipment; debt refinancing as long as new jobs will be created as a result; and/or business and industrial acquisitions when the loan will save and/or create jobs and/or the loan will keep the business open.

It’s natural to consider if these options are worth the possible bad effects down the road. Of course, for some business owners, not getting more financing as soon as possible could mean having to take drastic measures—even closing the business. The silver lining here is that most of the above will help recover your credit if you keep in good standing and make on time payments. There is a caveat: if you can’t make on time payments, these options will sink your business into debt and make matters worse.

It is important to protect your company’s intellectual property (IP). Ever wary of minimizing burn rate, startups may be tempted to defer investment in intellectual property protection. To those who have not tried to protect intellectual property, it feels complex and expensive. Too often, startups end up forfeiting intellectual property rights by neglecting to protect their ideas and inventions.
Business loans. For larger investments, it may be time for a term loan. Like a mortgage or personal loan, term loans come with fixed interest rates and monthly payments over a period of years. Unlike a line of credit, a business loan will provide you with a large sum of cash upfront. These loans can be ideal for expanding your space or funding other large investments.
Able Lending will manage and administer your process of raising 100% of your needed funds from friends and family. They make it easy for you to look professional, be charged your agreed upon interest rate with each individual investor, and they make sure everyone gets paid on time. They do all of this for a single origination fee of 1-3% at the time of funding.
If you own a home, and have 20-30% equity in it, then you may be able to get a home equity line of credit (HELOC) with a low interest rate. These funds are great to start a business, and can be used for any of your startup fees, including your franchise fees. With a HELOC you can get access to a lump sum immediately and draw against the total as you need it. Like a normal business line of credit, you only pay interest on what you’re using.
“ApplePie Capital can accelerate the growth of franchisees because we start by spending time with the franchisee up front to assess their situation, and then identify the best financing options to reach their short and long term goals. Sometimes that will be SBA, and sometimes it will be other options that the local bank doesn’t offer. And unlike the local bank, ApplePie knows the brand metrics. We can underwrite the loan ourselves for our core product, or can educate our lender network on the brand so the franchisee doesn’t have to.”
Now that you have completed our QuickBooks Online tutorials, you should be convinced that you don’t have to be a certified public accountant or have an accounting background to learn how to use QuickBooks. You should also know that QuickBooks is a much better solution than using a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet to keep track of your income and expenses.
*Annual Percentage Rates (APR), loan term and monthly payments are estimated based on analysis of information provided by you, data provided by lenders, and publicly available information. All loan information is presented without warranty, and the estimated APR and other terms are not binding in any way. Lenders provide loans with a range of APRs depending on borrowers' credit and other factors. Keep in mind that only borrowers with excellent credit will qualify for the lowest rate available. Your actual APR will depend on factors like credit score, requested loan amount, loan term, and credit history. All loans are subject to credit review and approval.
Many banks and credit unions offer financing for franchise purchases, so be sure to compare any franchisor lending rates and terms with these. When you approach a bank, be prepared to disclose all your financial information. While your credit rating is important, you’ll also need to provide a personal financial statement, copies of tax returns and information about the source of your down payment funds.

Are you thinking about starting a small business, freelancing, or turning a hobby into a full-time job? Or perhaps you're already running your own business and need some inspiration to take it to the next level. Each week, join small business coach Dave Crenshaw for two short lessons that reveal the secrets of running a successful small business. This series covers topics such as getting started, writing a business plan, determining your most valuable product or service, hiring people, managing processes, documenting systems, bootstrapping, seeking funding, accounting, controlling costs and profit margins, marketing, creating culture, and more.

As an industry leader since 2007, National Business Capital understands that every business has its own story, with their own unique goals for growth. NBC listens carefully to YOUR story before connecting you with a Global Marketplace of over 75+ Lenders to find the best franchise loans that fit your business needs perfectly. You will be paired with a Business Financing Advisor, who will be there to help answer any questions, and guide you through the financing process from start to finish.

There are infinite sources of financing available to help you launch the franchise of your dreams. However, operating a franchise with no reserves and blinding yourself to unexpected business problems can lead to disaster. A good rule to remember: Never invest more than 75 percent of your cash reserves. If you have $10,000, invest $7,500. If you have $25,000, invest $18,750.
Your place on the credit spectrum is one factor that will determine which loans you’ll qualify for. You can get your credit report for free from each of the three major credit bureaus — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion — once a year. You can get your credit score for free from several credit card issuers as well as personal finance websites, including NerdWallet.